Reviews by Knuckles:

I was down in Pacific City over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, and loaded up a case of beer while I was there. Amongst the spoils I brought back with me were a few bottles of the MacPelican. It pains me a bit to start of my Pelican reviews with a negative one, but my positive reviews of the Imperial Pelican Ale, Tsunami Stout and the India Pelican Ale should offset this one. To make a long story short, this was the least impressive of all the beers I brought home from the Pelican.

Appearance: By far, the best part of the beer (in my opinion). A nice light, copper colored brew that pours with a relatively insistent pure, white head. Held up to the light it's completely transparent, with a steady stream of bubbles making their way lazily up the sides of the glass.

Smell: There is a smell that I associate with some Scottish ales, and this beer had it. I'm going to assume that it's thrown off by the yeast, but it can give Scottish ales an almost ozone-esque quality to them, and this beer had it.

Taste: Another issue I have with some Scottish ales (and I am, again, assuming that this is a flavor thrown off by the yeast) is that many of them have a funky, almost metallic tang in the finish. This beer has that tang. It's got a decent malt front and middle, almost no hop character at all and then that tang kind of chases everything else off the palate.

Mouthfeel: Decent enough for a session-type Scottish ale. I suppose that 'just right' would be the way to describe it.

Drinkability: I, personally, could not drink very many of these simply because I don't like the finish. However, I can see how it could be an enjoyable beer for many people.

A very clear copper and not too much head. A small amount of sediment at the bottom makes for a hazier second pour from the bomber. The aroma is vaguely reminiscent of metallic lagers, not really distinctive or inviting. Broad, sturdy malts lead the way with elements of caramel, butter, bread crust. There's not much of the usual shortbread flavors one can often find in a Scottish-style ale. Some nutty elements and very slight toffee. The hoppiness is appropriately muted, not really grassy, a bit more citric like Pac NW beers; it's scarcely noticeable other than to give the malts a slight tweak. The beer can at times seem watery but never unpleasant. Eventually, a Scottish malt quality reveals itself, deep down, but it only shows itself intermittently. At other times, this beer oddly resembles a copper lager, as the Munich malts take the reins. Again, this is lacking many of the more familiar Scottish qualities, but it will serve nicely as a regular session ale, one with a reasonably sweet malt background and thin, refreshing mouthfeel. It's also not as cloying as many Scottish-style ales, so the drinkability is good. Perhaps it is wrong to consider it a Scottish-style ale at all, maybe better to think of it as your standard American micro amber. It's a step up from the Cream Ale and will not alienate those who dislike Pelican's intimidatingly hoppy IPA. I can imagine how good it would be through a handpump, although I preferred it on the colder side of cellar temp. I'll venture to say this is Pelican's best regular bottled beer for session drinking (unless you're a stout fan) and it should go very well with most pub-style fare, esp. burgers and such.

A: Pours a deeper amber with a bit of clarity. Pretty much no head on the pour and no lacing.

S: Not much of an aroma. Some grainy malts with light sweetness. Very light spiciness.

T/M: Pretty light flavor. A bit of an odd sweetness with a light grainy flavor. Seems a little watered down. There's a bit of caramel and very light spice. Body is medium light or so with light carbonation.

D: Low ABV and very drinkable but not very tasty or interesting. Maybe a good lawnmower beer or golf beer.

Pours a two-inch head that settles quickly to a thin skim that lasts the duration. Color is a rusted ruby with excellent clarity. Looks true to style.

Aroma gives off notes of cherry, wood, hops and caramel.

Flavors pretty much mirror the aroma, with a slight salt-and-smoke accent that usually comes up in this style, but these are very subtle back-notes, and unfortunately the body is a bit too thin to carry them through as they should be. Definitely thinner in comparison to the on-tap version I had. I tasted this first on-tap at the brewery/brewpub. It was much better then. I wonder if it's been sitting in the bottle too long? I bought it from the cooler at Pelican on Oct. 1. Of course, no date on the bottle...still a fine brew though, just not what I expected after the robust fresh version I had that night.

MacPelican's is an ale seriously red in color, with a big earthy sweet aroma. I get molasses and a hint of smoke -- perhaps emanating from a bakery. The flavor is much less "big beer"... it tastes much like it smells, but turned down, resulting in a well-balanced, simple, and refreshing experience. Totally sessionable, if a little on the watery side.

Poured from the 22oz bottle into a pint glass. Body is a pretty, slightly opaque orange color with muted golden highlights. A flourish of off-white head that quickly recedes to a thin ring. Aroma of sweet, slightly roasted malt - notes of caramel and dark fruit,with just a touch of brown sugar and leather.
Palate is mildly sweet up front, with good fruity notes on the swallow. Mild hops offer some balance, leading to a mellow finish with just a hint of astringency. Notes of clover honey, leather, and a touch of stone fruit. Body is fairly light and smooth, appropriate for a Scottish ale. An easy drinking ale, this is one of my favorite offerings from Pelican.

A real nice copper ruby body and very clear. There's a little bit of cola sized carbonation, but it settles with some faint rising small wisps that rise from the bottom. Head makes three fingers, a little fluffy with not too much retention to hold it all together. Manages to fall at a good pace. Fairly nice looking beer.

Very toasty malt, almost kind of wooden. Splintery with a faint hint of caramel backbone hiding. A little wet and clean.

Hits the palate with a somewhat weak texture. A little watery, almost fizzy. Light malts match from the nose, with a good toasty brown bread. Faint sweet maple on the finish but really hiding.

Overall not bad, but nothing too memorable, the mouthfeel doesn't seem to hold up the flavor well enough.

amber with a nice clarity to it and adequate carbonation visible trickling up from the bottom of the glass. This gathered at the top and combined to form a delicate head

nice delicate notes of nuts and caramel were mixed and intertwined with a deeply rooted grain filled back. This was a malt monster for sure as the only thing that was easily picked up through all this was the dark roasted malts that made up the majority of it. nice bit of caramel and sweetness right from the start and this really never faded as any other flavors that were here simply mingled and swirled around this. There were hints of roasted nuts as well as a nice bit of overt grassy notes